Lydia Gall, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, published a dispatch today about the deplorable conditions at the Hungary-Serbia border. According to Gall, asylum seekers have been waiting for days to be admitted to the transit zones at Röszke and Tompa border-crossing points.

Those waiting include children, pregnant women and people with medical problems such as diabetes, epilepsy and hypertension.

According to Gall:

“There is no such thing as a ‘rights free zone’ within the jurisdiction of any state, and Hungary is no exception. The Hungarian government should ensure adequate staffing in the transit zones to respond to the numbers of asylum seekers at its borders, and take measures to identify and prioritize particularly vulnerable groups. The authorities should attend to basic needs, both inside and outside the transit zones, and provide asylum seekers with information about their rights and access to a fair and effective process to determine their protection needs.”